Obelisk

“Obelisk feels like the kind of restaurant people spend years trying to find — understated, thoughtful, quietly exceptional, and somehow even better because it’s hidden in plain sight. A few weeks ago, we went to hear Tom Sietsma speak (hat tip, Arlington County Public Library) and someone asked him his favorite restaurant in DC. He said it depends on the occasion, the season, who he’s with — but if he had to name one restaurant he consistently loves, it’s Obelisk. We immediately turned to each other because we’re pretty tuned into the DC food scene… and somehow had never heard of it. We made a rezi immediately!!!!! Turns out this tiny, unmarked townhouse on P Street in Dupont has been quietly serving one of the city’s best Italian dinners for nearly 40 years 🍝 . No signage, only open Thurs-Sat, a handwritten menu that changes daily, and just ten tables. Chef and owner Esther Lee is there every evening, and the whole place feels intimate, elegant, and deeply personal. Dinner is a five-course prix fixe: antipasti, primi, secondi, fromaggi, and dolci, with three choices per course. Before anything begins, they bring rustic bread that tastes straight from Nonna’s kitchen 🥖 , plus crispy breadsticks dusted in semolina flour (and some other magical witchcraft), and olives. Then came a parade of surprise antipasti that could have been a meal on their own: burrata, a tomato-olive-anchovy tart with buttery quiche-like crust, cod croquettes, Iberico pork skewers, and asparagus with parm. For the pasta, we obv share-shared the lamb ragu tagliatelle (incredible) and the gnocchi with pesto (showstopper) — delicate, pillowy, dare we say almost weightless. We then split the branzino and rich, chestnutty wagyu steak🌰 Then the cheese course!!! Five little cheeses with fig jam, including La Tur — a creamy blend of cow, sheep, and goat’s milk cheese. The holy trinity 🐮 🐑 🐐 And finally, dessert: an almond cake with juicy cherries and a meyer lemon tart with rhubarb and the same flaky buttery quiche-like crust from earlier in the meal. One of our fave bites of the night!! 🍋 This is the kind of place that reminds you why people fall in love with restaurants 🫶🏻”

“Awesome experience in this DuPont Circle gem. Be prepared for a big meal! Ever changing menu and absolutely delicious. The staff is excellent and super knowledgeable! Must try! Pre fix is $135pp without wine pairings. Reservations necessary.”

“To say Obelisk is discreet is a massive understatement. Tucked away in Dupont Circle, the address is really of a large building that houses multiple businesses. Obelisk does not have a super large sign to indicate its presence so keep your eyes peeled. Oh the mystique! Practically speaking, folks should do what I did and just call if you can't find it. Once you finally arrive, you're seated in a very elegant and quaint medium sized dining room. It has a homey and relaxing feel that along with their color scheme and mini tree, seems to really fit as a concept. The restaurant offers a tasting menu that has a small number of options. The menu is handwritten, which speaks to the constantly changing dishes. In a nice gesture, I was given one of those menus to take with me, which is great because there's no way I would have remembered everything I had. Speaking of great gestures, the staff was so pleasant and accommodating. They really make customers feel at home, which again fits very well with the décor and concept. I tried Burrata, Swordfish Belly, Arancini, Salad, Pici with Lamb Ragu, Lobster Soup, Black Bass with Chickpeas, Fennel and Romesco, Cheese Plate, Baba Au Rhum with Pineapples and Whipped Cream and Butterscotch Custard. Burrata is a cheese that was topped with seasoning and olive oil. It was subtle, creamy and stringy, all of which made for a fun and interesting start to the meal. The Swordfish belly is like a hybrid play on sashimi and carpaccio. Absolutely delicious! The swordfish, while thinly cut, retained a firm texture, which is also due to it being a fatty fish. It was also very well seasoned, which brought out the natural flavors. The arancini and salad were both tasty dishes but paled in comparison to the swordfish belly. The Pici with Lamb Ragu was a definite highlight. Pici is like spaghetti except the noodles are thicker. They were perfectly prepared and an excellent pairing with the hearty ragu. Now, I'm no ragu expert, but this was some amazing stuff. The depth and intensity of the flavors was impressive and addicting. The lamb was so tender. The Lobster soup was an interesting dish. The pairing was more like lobster meets vegetable or minestrone soup. The lobster was very tender and had a hint of sweetness. The broth had a mild tomato-ish flavor but the texture was odd, a bit gelatinous. Tasty soup. The Black Bass came with other items but there was no doubt what the star was. Such an amazingly prepared fish, it was moist, tender, well seasoned. Although it wasn't the biggest size, somehow it satisfied me. Don't get me wrong though, I'd gladly eat 10 more of it. The chickpeas brought a different flavor and texture to the mix, but was otherwise unspectacular. The romesco was a great pairing with the fish and tasted like cocktail sauce. The Cheese plate consisted of barilotto, canestrato and raschera. Not bad, especially for those who take their cheese seriously. I've never been one to pay much attention to cheese plates and in fact, would much rather have a more meaningful dish instead. Good palate cleanser though. The Baba Au Rhum with Pineapples and Whipped Cream dessert is definitely visually appealing. The sweet bread/profiterole is soft and pairs very well with the cream and rum sauce. The pineapples add some texture and acidity. I have to say though, way too much rum going on here. The assertiveness of the rum was a tad bit overwhelming. On the other hand, the Butterscotch Custard was an exercise in restraint. The custard was mildly flavored, and had just the right balance of being firm yet creamy. The butterscotch also shines through but does not overpower. Great way to end a magnificent meal, along with the small candy plate that was given at the end. Obelisk is a high quality meal in my opinion both from a quality and pricing standpoint. In DC, where everything tends to be overpriced and underwhelming, that's saying something.”

“This place is very unassuming with a menu posted out front and having to go up a set of stairs. The setting is very house-like, as if you were invited to an Italian grandmother's house for dinner. It's a nice place to catch up with friends since the service is more relaxing, with a long downtime vetween courses for plenty of time to chat. It can get a bit loud if there is a roudy table. The menu changes each day and offers a 5 course meal (antipasti, pasta, protein, cheese, and dessert). We had the gnocchi dish, and the spaghetti with clams dish which were both really good. The protein dish we got seared bluefin tuna which was also good and such a large portion! If there's anything that you can't finish, you can ask them to wrap it up for you to take. The service was impeccable, dishes were served at the same time, plates were cleared quickly, and drinks were also refilled often. The place is very clean, the bathrooms were nice, and there is a coat rack/room in the entryway before entering.”

“We were very much looking forward to this—my retirement from teaching celebration. The food was good, not exceptional. But what absolutely stood out was how very, very, very, very long it took to get through the menu. More than 3 1/2 hours. We were all exhausted by the time the much anticipated check arrived. Had our meal taken half the time, no doubt my review would be much better. And so strange…no ambient music? We do detest places where we’d like the music turned down, but…nothing? It made the conversations around us that much more distracting.”